Surveys conducted by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) and others indicate that retired people, given the choice, prefer to live in the homes in which they had been living prior to retirement. One's own home tends to represent security and independence to most retired Americans. But because most housing in this country is designed for young, active and mobile people, individuals wishing to live in their own homes upon retiring must, at the very least, be able to drive, shop, cook, and perform household chores. Because most elderly persons lose one or more of these abilities as they grow older, the percentage of elderly persons living alone in the 1990s is currently only about 28% according to the AARP.

Not everyone, however, is in complete agreement about the meaning of living independently. Some elderly persons think living independently means being able to take care of...